Chapter 1240: Stone Slab Falls into the Pond

The Ancient Earth Vein Tree was also caught in the Faceless Saint Emperor's web of refined essence. Thus, when Ruomu pledged allegiance, the Ancient Earth Vein Tree vaguely sensed it, though it couldn't be certain. Its apprehension and unease simply grew day by day.

"Now that we are all subordinates of the Saint Emperor and under His protection, surely He wouldn't dare do anything to me?" The Ancient Tree could only comfort itself this way.

The Ancient Earth Vein Tree knew clearly that in this world, probably only the Saint Emperor could preserve its life. The more useful it was to the Holy Dynasty, the safer it would be. So, the Ancient Earth Vein Tree was eager to prove its worth to the Saint Emperor.

Unfortunately, ever since it arrived in the Grand Inauguration of the Holy Dynasty, it seemed to have been forgotten. No one had actively sought it out. Even the task it had previously been given, to sort out the earth veins of the Grand Inauguration's minor world, had gone unchecked. This left the Ancient Earth Vein Tree feeling quite dejected.

However, on this day, the opportunity the Ancient Tree had longed for finally arrived. The one who arrived was none other than the Saint Emperor's fifth disciple, Ou Shangtian.

"Is this the schematic map of the Xuanhuang World's surging earth veins?" Ou Shangtian asked, pointing at the image before them. It was dense, like a vast underground network, extending to every corner of the Xuanhuang World. Like blood vessels in a human body, it continuously contracted and pulsed, appearing quite eerie.

The Ancient Earth Vein Tree nodded, "The Young Venerable One sees clearly." Ou Shangtian seemed quite pleased by the Ancient Tree's flattery and readily accepted the title of "Young Venerable One."

"I heard from Senior Sister Lin Ling that traveling through the surging earth veins is spontaneously concealed by the Xuanhuang World's heavenly dao power, making it difficult for ordinary people to detect. Is that true?" Ou Shangtian asked again.

"Indeed," the Ancient Earth Vein Tree replied, handing over a withered branch. "Young Venerable One, please observe."

Ou Shangtian felt the surging power of the earth veins within the withered branch and frowned slightly. "This doesn't seem like much to me. How can it possibly shield against others' perception?"

The Ancient Earth Vein Tree smiled faintly. "Young Venerable One, you must understand that grains of sand build a pagoda, and drops of water form rivers. A single point of earth vein power may seem insignificant, but when the surging earth veins of the entire Xuanhuang World converge, it becomes a mighty, thunderous force. Ultimately, the circulation of earth veins is a crucial component of the Xuanhuang World's normal operation, and this old one merely acts as its steward. Compared to the profound principles of the entire Xuanhuang World, ordinary cultivators are no more than ants, and it is perfectly normal for them to be overlooked."

Ou Shangtian gazed blankly at the schematic map of the surging earth veins, lost in thought.

After a long time, he came back to his senses, returned the withered earth vein branch, and instructed, "Coincidentally, I am embarking on a mission assigned by my Master, and I might need your assistance."

This was precisely what the Ancient Earth Vein Tree had been waiting for. It rejoiced upon hearing this. "Young Venerable One, please command as you wish; I shall certainly offer my full assistance."

"In the Xuanhuang World, there is a senior with unfathomable strength, who carries a stone slab on his back... Do you know of him?" Ou Shangtian asked, looking at the Ancient Earth Vein Tree.

The Ancient Earth Vein Tree's expression suddenly changed, its previous eagerness vanishing instantly. It stared at Ou Shangtian in disbelief, and after a moment, tentatively asked, "Young Venerable One, is the Holy Dynasty planning to make a move against Senior Stone Slab? Forgive my frankness, but Stone Slab is truly a Longevity Realm existence, and has attained enlightenment for many years..."

Ou Shangtian waved his hand impatiently. "Of course, I know the strength of that Stone Slab. Longevity Realm, indeed! Compared to my Master, it's nothing! Don't worry, I'm only responsible for luring him to a specific location."

Hearing Ou Shangtian say this, the Ancient Earth Vein Tree slightly relaxed. Since the mysterious and unfathomable Faceless Saint Emperor could subdue its father, dealing with this Stone Slab should also pose no significant problem. The Ancient Tree became invigorated. "Young Venerable One, may I ask how you require my cooperation?"

Ou Shangtian outlined the detailed plan, and the Ancient Tree pondered, then nodded, indicating it would not be a problem.

"Without further ado, I will depart immediately after seeing my Master."

The Ancient Tree stated, "My main body is still in Xuanhuang, and I can manifest at any time if the Young Venerable One summons me."

Ou Shangtian hurriedly entered the Saint Emperor's Seat. When he emerged, the anxiousness on his face had completely vanished.

"I have the Kunqian Bone Hand, and the Seven-Colored Jade Void Flowing Light for protection. This time, I even received a treasure from Master. Plus, I've studied array formations for so long... I just need to lure him to the fishing pond, and the mission will be complete. It should be fine. But isn't the fishing pond a treasure land of our Holy Dynasty? Why would Master want me to lure a formidable enemy there? Isn't He afraid of accidents?"

Ou Shangtian racked his brains but couldn't understand it. However, in the end, he bothered no more with it. He left the Grand Inauguration's minor world and headed straight for Jiushan Province of the Myriad Immortals Alliance.

Aided by the surging earth veins, in the time it takes to drink a cup of tea, he had already arrived within Jiushan Province. Ou Shangtian tried for a bit and confirmed that the spatial laws here were indeed somewhat chaotic and fragile. If he were to recklessly use teleportation, he would likely tear space directly, be sucked into the spatial turbulence, and vanish without a trace.

"However, flying poses no problem. These nine mountains might impede ordinary cultivators, but they won't stop me, who possesses the seven-colored divine light." As Ou Shangtian thought this, the Seven-Colored Jade Void Flowing Light, under his deliberate control, formed a protective barrier around his body. Like a great sun in the high heavens, it continuously emanated its own rhythm outwards.

With a slight shift of his thoughts, a suit of armor, also radiating a seven-colored luster, suddenly appeared on Ou Shangtian's body. His Master's words simultaneously echoed in Ou Shangtian's ears: "This item is called the Flowing Light Armor, refined from Nine Heavens Thunderbolts and Dawn Rainbows. Once worn, your flight speed can rival lightning, and it can disregard most attack methods..."

Ou Shangtian tried it out. Gazing at the distant mountain peak, in just a blink, he arrived at the summit the next moment.

"So fast!?" Even Ou Shangtian, the one who caused it, was inwardly shocked. Under the dual blessings of the Flowing Light Armor and the Seven-Colored Jade Void Flowing Light, his speed had reached an incredible degree. Even though he flew ostentatiously, radiating vibrant seven-colored light all over, no cultivator in the entire Jiushan Province could detect him due to his astonishing speed. This held true even for the Dao-converging guardians of the Myriad Immortals Alliance.

Ou Shangtian was initially cautious, but after confirming that no one could detect him, he gradually relaxed. He even felt a thrill of being able to do as he pleased.

"What joy, truly exhilarating!" He had flown back and forth across the vast Jiushan Province several times in the span of a few breaths. The sensation of lightning-fast speed left Ou Shangtian somewhat intoxicated.

At the same time, a trace of confusion arose in his mind: "Just flying continuously like this will lure out that Stone Slab? Is it really that mysterious? I'm so fast, what if he can't find me? Should I try slowing down a bit?"

Just as Ou Shangtian's thoughts began to wander, an inexplicable sense of crisis suddenly arose within him. An image suddenly surged into his mind. The world suddenly darkened. As if bound by an invisible force, no matter how he flew, he couldn't escape the encroaching darkness. In despair, his body could only slowly slide towards the center of the darkness.

Ou Shangtian's heart jolted violently. He knew this was a spontaneous warning from one of his other innate wonders, besides the Kunqian Bone Hand: the Myriad Deaths Tome.

"What the hell? Stone Slab?" The foreseen scene made Ou Shangtian's hair stand on end. He made an immediate decision, detonating an array crest he had prepared for a long time. Instantly, countless array formations were deployed, shielding Ou Shangtian in their center. Only then did the illusion from the Myriad Deaths Tome slowly dissipate.

However, the sense of crisis in Ou Shangtian's heart did not recede. As the array setter, he could clearly feel the hundreds of thousands of formations he had personally arranged around him rapidly disappearing at an inconceivable speed. Yet, from beginning to end, he saw no one breaking the arrays. It was as if something was silently devouring them.

The terror in his heart intensified. While his protective array was still effective, Ou Shangtian threw several more array crests around him. As layers of arrays successively unfolded, a phantom figure slowly began to emerge. Ou Shangtian, however, dared not look too much.

"Earth veins!" With a silent shout in his heart, Ou Shangtian plunged straight down from the sky into the ground. He vanished in an instant.

Meanwhile, the myriad array formations he left behind were strangely compressed into book-page-like entities, all slowly drifting before the suddenly appearing figure. The figure gradually revealed its true appearance: a scholar with a striking stone slab on his back. Each time he took a page and finished reading it, the page disappeared from his hand, flickering with luminescence, as if it had been branded onto the stone slab.

The scholar was in no hurry to pursue the fleeing Ou Shangtian. Instead, he unhurriedly read all the pages in his hand. His previously calm face gradually began to show a frown.

"Since when have array formations in the Xuanhuang World developed to such a degree? That world light... Could it be an outsider?"

All the pages in his hand disappeared, and the scholar glanced towards Ou Shangtian's sensed location. "Such speed. And even the Ancient Earth Vein Tree as an accomplice..." The scholar reviewed the stone slab's most recent records. He found no relevant entries.

"With more and more foreign realms appearing, the stone slab, once said to be omniscient, is slowly proving to be less so. Wuyou, you were right. Nothing is eternal. Neither immortals nor the power we Longevity Realm cultivators pride ourselves on."

Although this matter clearly reeked of a conspiracy, as if it were trying to lure him in, Stone Slab felt no fear whatsoever. Instead, it was filled with more curiosity.

Taking a step, he arrived at Ou Shangtian's previous location in the next moment. However, Ou Shangtian seemed to have been prepared, having already plunged into the earth veins one step ahead. The surging earth veins roared and thundered; even Stone Slab found it difficult to locate an ant's figure within them. But Stone Slab was in no hurry, knowing the opponent would inevitably reappear. Thus, he simply remained in place, waiting.

"Interesting. It seems the mastermind behind this knows a little about me." There was no anger from being played with; instead, a faint smile appeared on Stone Slab's face.

In this manner, Stone Slab was gradually drawn to a tranquil mountain Daoist temple. Ou Shangtian stopped fleeing and stood respectfully behind a towering figure. Stone Slab's gaze shifted from Ou Shangtian to this figure.

After observing for a moment, the smile on Stone Slab's lips finally vanished. It was replaced by a hint of confusion and solemnity. The person before him felt somewhat familiar, yet also triggered a crisis warning.

"I don't sense the aura of body-dao unification; not a Longevity Realm cultivator? Or perhaps, like me, an ancient method Longevity cultivator?" Stone Slab secretly pondered.

"Standing like that, aren't you tired? Come in and sit." Just moments after their standoff, Li Ping spoke first. A single sentence broke the tense, confrontational atmosphere. It didn't resemble an encounter between enemies; rather, it was like old friends, familiar and cordial, greeting each other after many years.

A peculiar feeling immediately arose in Stone Slab's heart. Nevertheless, he softly said, "Alright." He followed Li Ping into the Daoist temple below.

Passing through the temple, Li Ping didn't stop but continued to a pond behind it. "Friend, how long have you carried this stone slab on your back?" Li Ping asked.

Stone Slab paused slightly, then answered without concealment, "Thirty-six thousand, nine hundred and forty-two years."

"Thirty-six thousand, nine hundred and forty-two years," Li Ping repeated the number. "That sounds like a long time," Li Ping remarked with a sigh. "But it's only a little over thirty thousand years. Compared to the lifespan of the Xuanhuang World, it's insignificant, let alone the sea of stars beyond the Xuanhuang World."

Stone Slab echoed, "Indeed, thirty thousand years, gone in an instant. Perhaps it's negligible to the world itself, but for an ordinary person like me, it's truly been quite a long time."

"Ordinary person..." Ou Shangtian couldn't help but murmur softly at this point.

Li Ping smiled. "Shangtian, do not be impolite. This senior is correct; he is indeed just an ordinary person."

Ou Shangtian dared not defy the Saint Emperor and quickly bowed to Stone Slab in apology. Stone Slab, however, paid him no mind, instead staring directly at Li Ping. "You... seem to know me very well?"

Li Ping didn't admit it. "It's just that I empathize somewhat. I am also just an ordinary person, yet I bear a fated mission."

Upon hearing this, Ou Shangtian lowered his head further, fearing he might reveal the slightest sign of abnormality. Stone Slab, however, was thoughtful, continuously scrutinizing Li Ping. His tall stature was unlike that of ordinary cultivators. Several intertwined auras clinging to him were also incredibly profound, making Stone Slab dare not underestimate him.

"Friend, why have you led me here? Is it merely for a brief chat?" Finally, Stone Slab asked outright, ending their veiled exchange.

"I am here to help you find liberation," Li Ping said in a deep voice.

These direct words made Ou Shangtian involuntarily raise his head, a flicker of excitement in his eyes. Stone Slab's eyes narrowed, becoming wary.

"It seems, my friend, you've misunderstood me. I genuinely wish to help you find liberation." A hint of disappointment was evident in Li Ping's tone.

The Faceless Saint Emperor pointed towards the surroundings. "Could it be that you haven't noticed anything unusual here?"

Upon hearing this, Stone Slab's attention shifted from the Faceless Saint Emperor to its surroundings. After a full circle, its gaze finally settled on the tranquil small pond.